1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates generally to increased efficiency in a video phone communication system, and more specifically, to a method and system for automatically configuring a video phone during a communication session.
2. State of the Art
Video phone communication systems provide visual and audio communication between two or more users during a communication session. A video phone camera at a first location can transmit and receive audio and video signals to and from a video phone camera at a second location such that participants at the first location are perceived to be present or face-to-face with participants at a second location and vice versa. Video phones typically include a camera, display device, telephone keypad, speaker and a microphone all of which are operatively connected. Several video phones on the market are equipped with “Pan Tilt Zoom” (PTZ) cameras, which allow the camera to pan the room and locate a particular location. Typically, users can adjust the pan, tilt, and zoom functions from either the near side or remote side.
Video phone communication systems span a variety of applications. One possible application of a video phone system includes facilitization of a communication session with a deaf or hearing-impaired user. A hearing-impaired user can use a video phone during a communication session to relay his or her expressions. The expressions, such as sign language and/or body language, may be interpreted or translated by a translation service such as a video relay service (VRS). The translation service provides a hearing-capable user who relays the expressions of the hearing-impaired caller to a user on the other end of the communication session in a conventional manner, such as through the use of a voice-based dialogue conveyed over a conventional voice phone.
Traditionally, at the beginning of a video phone communication session, users are required to align the camera in order to locate and focus on a particular location. Even though a hearing-impaired user may sit in the same location from one call to the next, an interpreter on the other end may spend time at the beginning of a call attempting to adjust the camera in order to obtain an improved view of the hearing-impaired user. Because live interpreters are very expensive, valuable time can be wasted at the beginning of a call while framing the user in the picture.
Therefore, in order to provide increased efficiency for users of a video phone communication system where a calling party needs the assistance of an intermediary service, a need exists for improving efficiencies during the setup time of each call.